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The Chulli Water Purifier: Acceptability and Effectiveness of an Innovative Strategy for Household Water Treatment in Bangladesh

To evaluate the effectiveness of the chulli water purifier, a new household water treatment strategy in Bangladesh that relies on passing water through a stove, we interviewed persons who had this water purifier. From households using it regularly, we tested untreated water, sand-filtered water without heat pasteurization, sand-filtered and heat pasteurized water, and household stored, treated water. Reasons for discontinuing use among 80 of 101 persons included mechanical problems (49%), inconvenience (35%), and high cost (10%). Only four households were regularly using the purifier. Three (19%) of 16 heat-treated samples were positive for Escherichia coli. The median log reduction from source water was > 5. Nine (56%) stored water samples were positive for E. coli, indicating recontamination. Poor durability, inconvenience, high cost, and post-treatment contamination limit the usefulness of the purifier. These issues, which are relevant for other household water treatment strategies, should be resolved before further implementation.

Received October 25, 2007. Accepted for publication February 16, 2008.

Acknowledgments: The ICDDR,B International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh acknowledges with gratitude the commitment of The United Nations Children Fund to the Centre’s research efforts. We thank the Integrated Approach to Community Development for providing field support; the study participants for the time they spent participating in interviews; Thomas Clasen and John Crump for their valuable contributions to the study concept and protocol; and M.A. Sheikh, K. S. Rahman, N. Jahan, M. M. Rahman, and A. Amin for their assistance with the field work.

Financial support: This study was supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund.

^* Address correspondence to Sundeep K. Gupta, 2190 Kampala Avenue, Dulles, VA 20189. E-mail: scg7{at}ug.cdc.gov

Authors’ addresses: Sundeep K. Gupta, 2190 Kampala Avenue, Dulles, VA 20189, E-mail: scg7{at}ug.cdc.gov. M. S. Islam and Stephen P. Luby, ICDDR,B, International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh, GPO Box 128, Mohakhali, Dhaka 1212, Bangladesh, E-mails: sislam{at}icddrb.org and sluby{at}icddrb.org. Richard Johnston, United Nations Children’s Fund, Water and Environmental Sanitation Section, 1 Minto Road, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh, E-mail: rjohnston{at}unicef.org. Pavani K. Ram, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Health Professions, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Room 273, Farber Hall, Buffalo, NY 14214, E-mail: pkram{at}buffalo.edu.